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Now pay attention to how pathetic our PP is. We'll just blast 40 foot shots from teh point.

I thought Bertuzzi was possibly your best plaer in the last game.

Hey, don't still my thunder man.

With Niemi in net our odds (Hawk fan here)should be pretty good. That is as long as you don't put us on the PP.

I had a hell of a time finding a stream tonight (ndsports is having buffering problems for some reason). If others are having similar issues I found a feed on justin.tv/furby666 that works pretty good. It's the Hawk Comcast feed but its a feed all the same.

If you guys really want to win just commit a ton of penalties and put us on the PP. This unit has been dreadful all year long and flat out cost us the game last night against the Sharks. Furthermore, we have a coach that refuses to change our strategy which consists of blasting long, futile shots from the point. With the peronnel we habe we should be top 5 in the league. Unfortunately for us it is showing ZERO signs of life.

This thread has turned into a worthless pissing match. Fact is this is a depleted Detroit team that will have a hell of a time competing with the other elites until they get more healthy. The Wings offensive attack was woeful as the chances were few and far between. Part of this was attributable to the Hawks D and puck possession, while the rest can be attributed to the anemic lineup they put on the ice. Any fan on either said that can't acknowledge either of these two facts is nothign but a homer. Blackhawkdown and Miller Brew are the 2 that come to mind. Earlier in the year the Hawk's goaltending and defense was wanting as they were way too porous. But since the first 2-3 weeks the D has been stellar most nights. The Hawks are the youngest team in the league and we're finally seeing the benefits of cohesion as they are truly playing as a unit. Guys like Kane, Hjalmarsson, and Keith are showing that they're studs, while most of the role players are doing their jobs as well. Some of the ignorant fans here like to discount (i emphasize some as most recognize this is a team to contend with) the Hawks status as legit cup contenders, but so far this team has done nothing to discredit the hype. They're a good team. The same can be said about your Red Wings. They have shown time and time again that they are not only the best, but they are able to overcome slow starts and adversity. It really is amazing how many points you have right now considering the injuries and lackluster goaltending you get on most nights. All but the most retarded Hawk fans know that Detroit will be a force. They are also my most feared opponent as they tend to walk all over the Hawks when given any kind of room in the offensive zone. You'll be pretty scary once healthy. As for all of this bandwagon crap BHD was right about one thing: you guys probably have the most bandwagon fans. But every Hawk fan should be wishing they had the most bandwagon fans as it illustrates one thing: you are consistently winning. When you are a Stanley Cup contender for most of the last 10-15 you're going to have a lot of folks hop on the bandwagon. Likewise when run into the ground for 10-15 years you're going to lose a lot of fans - even hardcores - as the treatment of fans and his team under Dollar Bill was enought to make a lot of people crack. Now that the Hawks are winning again their are a LOT of people hopping on board. I'm sure the attendance figures from the Dead Things era of the 80s getting into the competetive era of the 90s would show a similar ascension. Some of those are long time fans that have been reinvigorated, some are new fans that will be for life, while others are the bandwagon fans being talked about here that will be gone once the Hawks aren't the hottest thing in town. Those are just the realities of winning. IMO pretty much all of the fans here are of the longterm variety and are extremely knowledgable about their team. A few are blatant homers, though that is to be expected on most every board. Entire fanbases shouldn't be characterized based on the idiotic few - like BHD - that go to a rival board to start s*** and be a total jackass. Guys like him aren't even worth your time. Hopefully the Wings will be completely healthy for the last 2-3 games of the season series so that we can REALLY see how each team stack up against each other. My guess is that it will be a back and forth dogfight.

As a Hawk fan I'm curious as to how your young guys (Abdelkader, Ericsson, Leino, Filpulla, etc.) have played this year. I haven't seen a lot of games outside of our own (I wasn't able to watch the 1st contest earlier in the season) and I'd like to get your guys' assessment of their play. Depending on how some of your studs come back from injury, the recent rash of mangled players may accelerate their development and make you better (than you already would have been) off for the postseason. Despite some of the gloomy proclamations by some pundits on the web, I still consider you guys the team to beat in the West. So consider this one of those "keep your friends close but your enemies closer" kind of things. Thanks in advance.

Maybe it was, just well disguised perhaps?

The first few games he played real well, but has been rather invisible since. His peripheries don't look to good, but I don't think he's been that bad. The main thing is he can skate so he doesn't screw up the rest of the team. I'd liken him to Cam Barker in the sense that (at times) it looks like he should be better than he is but likely never will be (on a somewhat smaller scale tho). At $1.2 he's overpriced, but at least he's not a Matt Walker type failure at forward, which is a pretty high standard of failure by the way

Hopefully you guys can start getting some consistency in net as I feel your pain. Huet and his 5 + million contract might be available if you're interested .

Unlike SOME trolls, I don't go to other team's message boards to start s***. I find that most fans, outside of the blind homers that every team has, have a very intellegent view of their own team. It's also helpful to get an outsider's opinion of your own players as sometimes your own negative/positive slants on certain players can cloud your judgement. I was kinda hoping you would say they have all been terrible , but your response is what I expected, more or less.

That's a lot of shots, but there's always something to be said of the quality as well. As a Hawk fan I am quite accustomed to seeing the Hawks heavily outshoot an opponent (we lead the league by a gargantuan margin in shot desparity) only to lose. Often these "shots" are coming from the point which inherently lowers your chances straight away. In addition, blasting shots from the point can often lead to rushes going the other way, especially if you have errant shooters that miss the net. In the past (especially last year) the Hawks often were odd-man rushed by a 2 to 1 margin. Makes it easy to lose leads/games even if you pour it on in the other end. Not to mention, all a team needs to do is get 1 more shot on goal than the Leafs have scored to potentially be in line for the win. A wall of toilet paper would have a better chance of stopping an incoming puck than Toskala.

What could have been a decent thread has been tainted by Blackhawk trolls and a Red Wings homer. Is it that hard to formulate an honest, realistic view about the opposing team. Fact is you guys (Wings) were the best team in the NHL last year, only to fall to another good team due to some unfortunate circumstances. Although you guys are currently crippled by injuries, aging on the blue line, and no longer >>>>>> than the rest of the central any reasonable Blackhawk fan thinks you guys will be a force come playoff time. Why? Because you have the best defenseman in the NHL (until someone proves otherwise), some of the best 2 way players in the game, and a coach who is a strategist and can rally his troops for the playoffs. I'd never count you guys out. At some point Lidstrom and Kronwall figure to show their age, and questionable goaltending may get hard to overcome. But guess what?? That hasn't definitively happened yet and even if it did the Wings have always been adept at replacing guys with a talented prospect pool. So until your team PROVES they DON'T have what it takes I'll always assume you are the team to beat. I bet any sane Hawk fan would agree with me. On the flipside, only a retarded Wings fan can discount the Hawks as some harmless threat. Although the roster is similar, this is FAR from the same team you faced last post season. Last year's edition couldn't win a faceoff to save its life, but now have the 2nd best % in the league and have two of the best in Toews and Madden. Guys like Buff, Steeger, Hjalmarrson, et. al continue to improve in every facet of the game. Our backchecking is like night and day, the pokecheck has become a teamwide weapon used to create many a turnover. Many guys, especially Kane, are better defensively Everyone knows we added Hossa (and yes, lost Havlat in the process), but our best addition has maybe been Madden. His on ice awareness is surreal and he makes everyone around him better. Not to mention the Hawks were and still are the youngest team in the league. To assume most players wouldn't improve with time and experience is foolish to say the least. The above isn't aimed as painting us as THE favorites, just that we deserve to be mentioned as A favorite to come out of the West. Injuries aside (as they can cripple ANYONE at any time), this team's weaknesses are (potentially) goaltending (though it's been good so far aside from the first 5 games), a defensively inept 3rd pairing, and our PP (until recently they looked wretched). Quenneville also has to keep this team aggressive in it's defensive zone as that (IMO) was the biggest reason you guys took us out in the playoffs. Not pressuring a team that has Z, Franzen, Datsyuk et. al is utter suicide as it effectively gives them free reign to create on the ice. So far I think we've improved on this quite drastically, but we'll wait to see how we hold up in the playoffs. For now, the Wings are the kings of the West until somebody, hopefully the Hawks, proves otherwise.

Hawks fan here, and I'm interested in hearing your early season strengths and weaknesses as well as your best and worst (or most disappointing) players. Strengths: - Our overall team speed is unparalleled with Sopel being the only pylon on the team. - One of the best (if not the best) 5 on 5 offensive hockey teams. - Overall depth. - Offenses prowess from the blue line. - Forechecking. - Offensive play in front of the net. - Our pokechecking and play near the blue line is good and much improved over last year. Weaknesses: - Propensity to yield mindnumbing TOs - Goaltending (duh) - 3rd line defensive pairing (Sopel and Barker are liabilities by themselves let alone together) - Lackodaisocal backchecking (too many odd man rushes; a big reason why opponents, goaltending aside, score so many goals on relatively few shots). - Horrendous special team schemes: Our box-in PK philosophy is ridiculous. Great teams such as yours eat this strategy alive as they skate, cycle, and collapse for easy shots at will (that KILLED us in the CF series last year). The PP is equally as ridiculous as we bomb shots from the point, instead of use our superior puck handling and speed create easier, high percentage shots for Kane and Sharp. There is NO REASON for a team with this fire power to be so poor on the PP (same thing as last year). - Coaching: I think Q is to blame for both the above. - Board play in the defensive zone: still way too many whiffed clearing attempts and half-assed efforts along the boards. - Finishing ability. We can score, but the only guys who consistently finish around the net are Sharp and Kane. This is evident in our horrendous SO record. - Faceoffs: Looks to be a strength rather than a weakness like it was last year. Best Players: - Kane: He's been amazing. Barring injury I'll be shocked if he doesn't surpass 90 points. - Buff: He hasn't taken a game off this year. His aggressiveness and skating have hit another level. - Sharp: Right where he left off. - Madden: One of the best signings by ANY team in the offseason. 36? He doesn't look slow on this team at all (and his backchecking is superb). - Versteeg: No sophomore slump here. - Campbell: He's been very good so far. Him and Hjalmarsson have actually been our best d-men. - Hjalmarsson: See above. We need to find a way to lock this guy up. Worst Players: - Huet: He looked good last night, but the rest? Ugh... - Cam Barker: Yeah he's got a sweet shot, but he is a turnover machine that lacks any hockey awareness whatsoever. Trade bait #1. - Sopel: Q's fascination with terrible defensemen continues. Our defense has been very good in general, outside Sopel and Barker (if they stick together they will cost us games and potentially seeds) - Seabrook: He hasn't been bad, just not very good (defensively). I'm not worried about him though. - Toews: Another slow start to the season...but he hasn't let that affect the rest of his game. So far the Hawks have had a great start to the season. They've got 4 lines capable of barraging you and their offensive pressure is relentless. It is concerning however, that they continually give up high quality scoring chances on a minimum of shots. On the overall the team is getting better at backchecking (Kane is on a whole other level this year; a complete )player now), and the Hawks are now using their sticks and speed to create numerous turnovers throughout the games. But as of right now, I don't think our goaltending is good enough to prevent elite teams from scoring on the numerous oddman rushes. If the Hawks can reduce even ONE of those two weaknesses they will have as good a chance as any to reach the finals. But one of those two (at the very least) has GOT to change. As stated above, our special teams has got to step up. With our top four defensemen and the defensive ability of our top forwards there is no reason why a team this skilled shouldn't be in the top 8. Likewise our PP should be much better, especially if this team starts to utilize it's puck handling ability. Great teams don't keep blasting pucks from the point, the quickly cycle the puck to keep the defense and the goaltender moving. It leads to wide open nets and easy scoring opportunities for the snipers. Regardless it should be a great season as the division is tough as nails. Every team has question marks right now, but at least 4 (except for the Preds who look rather pedestrian right now) have the talent to do damage in the playoffs. I'm interested in what you have to say about your team. -

I think even the most optimistic fan realizes somebody is going to have to be traded to make room to sign all three. Obviously it would be aweseom if the Hawks could unload at least one of Campbell or Huet, but he contracts are so bad there is no way one could realistically expect that to happen. I think the Hawks will have to unload 2 of Ladd, Sharp, Steeger, and Buff (my votes are for Sharp and Buff) and maybe Barker. This could net the Hawks some good prospects, unload some salary, and could potenitally coax a team into taking (along with the aforementioned players) one of our bad contracts in return.

Sopel is NOT a solid defender, being 1-2 notches better than Matt Walker (who had no business playing in the NHL he was that bad) which is not a compiment. So long as Q isn't ******* retarded and gets a hard on for him like he did for Walker, Sopel likely won't even be in our top 7 and will either be traded or sent to rot in the minors (behind Seabs, Keith, Campbell, Barker, Hjarlm, Johnson, and Hendry). If Tallon does his job Q won't have the chance to screw this up.

That's just not true. I personally think Kane will be let go if anyone is out of the big three, which means they'll have their entire stable (hopefully minus Campbell) back after next year. It's ridiculous how you can claim you guys have 6 quality D men (which I think you do), then calim the Hawks only will have 2. Even if one of Keith, Seabrook, or Barker ( I think they should trade him while his stock is high because his hockey instincts suck) is traded, they'll have the 2 remaining players plus Hjarlmarsson and at least one of Johnson or Hendry. Not nearly the dire straits picture you try to paint on D.

Even though we are fans of two rival teams, I'd like to think that we share common ground in wanting to feel that the team that ousts you from the playoffs (if it happens) truly was the better team and outplayed your for the better part of the series. While the Wings certainly have been the more mistake free team, they really haven't done anything that has made me feel the Blackhawks are overmatched in any one particular area aside from one: coaching. Q has put tremendous pressure on his goalies for almost the entire season by not integrating a more aggressive forechecking scheme to prevent opponents from easily gaining the offenisve zone. The Hawks were absolutely murdered in game 1 becaue of this futile strategy as your team was able to skate, pass, and shoot at will and with little opposition. Finally the Hawks implemented a more aggressive forecheck at the blue line in game to and did a much better job of stifling your offensive rush. What took most knowledgeable fans ONE game (during the regular season) to figure out, took 6-7 (including the playoffs) for our "seasoned" head coach. Then throw in the fact that our PK STILL compacts aroudn the net, backs off the puck, thus allowing you to move the puck around at will all but further illustrates the cluelessness that is Q. It's hard enough to stop you guys using sound strategy, but its nearly impossible when giving up great shots from virtually all angles. The only way I can explain how you haven't had MORE success on the PP during this series is shear luck. It's certainly not from having the likes of Matt Walker seeing significant PK minutes. That brings me to another point of emphasis. The bulk of the individual mistakes are coming from the veterans rather than the rookies. Campbell gift-wrapped a 3 on 1 to conclude game 3, and his lack of defensive contain (in chasing a puck in the O zone down behind the goal) resulted in the first goal of today's game. He also (inexcusably) lets Franzen get off the shot which resulted in the second goal when he could have easily pokechecked it away. Campbell routinely shows a lack of hockey awareness that is scary to watch. Then Q compounds it by continuing to trot Matt ******* Walker out onto the ice at EVERY opportunity. He might be (if he's not he's close) the worst player in the NHL and by far the biggest liability the Hawks have on the ice. If he isn't flailing on a clearing attempt, he's setting screens on our own goalies, or falling down while trying to hit someone instead of playing the puck. Any coach that becomes infatuated with Walker should be fired immediately as he brings nothign to the table; he can't skate, hit, get a shot on goal, or do anything constructive on the ice. While I'm at it the veteran "presence" of Pahlsson has been laughable at best. He's great at looking clueless in the penalty box after getting called for one of several needless penalties. The point of this post wasn't to make excuses or to deny credit to the Wings as they have shown they will make the Hawks beat them rather than beat themselves. I've been pretty dismayed at how neither team has looked all that impressive, and that the interaal mistakes have been the biggest factor durign each teams losses. Although the Hawks are a young team that should have several good years ahead of them, retaining Q would be a HUGE mistake in the continuation of this team's progress. If we had a coach who was more adept at using the talent on the blue line in a more aggressive oriented strategy, I feel the Hawks may have had a legitimate chance this series. Unfortunately though, Q doesn't stress defensive discipline and trots out Matt Walker despite the fact he has Aaron Johnson, a much better player, stting on the bench. As a fan it's a pretty touch pill to swallow. With that said, I hope you guys get healthy and kick the s*** out of the Penguins. IMO the key will be denying the blue line much like you have against us for the bulk of the series. But if you gusy sit back and let them dictate movement in their offensive zone (especially on the PP as we have) you may find yourself in trouble. Luckily for you guys you have a top notch coach who understands the importance of defensive strategy and responsibility. One more thing, I'm kind of curious if you think Tallon will go under fire due to the performance (or lack thereof) of Huet, Campbell, and Pahlsson. Considering the success the team has had I think not, but I personally hope he gets the proper scrutiny for these moves. Just thinking about the years and $$$$ left on his contract makes me sick>

Hey, I didnt' think the Kronwall major was the right call, though I do see how the refs could have called it. I think a minor would have been the befitting call. Don't forget the Wings were the beneficiaries of some borderline/bad calls in the second in an obvious makeup attempt from the first. But why ***** about it? I don't think the reffing has been very good all series, but its up to the players to play a smarter brand of hockey if they want to stay out of the penalty box. Fact is your team should have done more if they wanted to win just as the Hawks should have in games 1 and 2. If the games close enough so that either team can have a game determined by the referees they really aren't playing well enough in the first place. The Hawks especially.

Both teams have been guilty of it thus far, though until game three you guys had been consistently better at remaining focused. Chicago's lack of focus, particulary in maintaining an aggressive forecheck and defensive style, was the key cog in Detroit's late 2nd period comeback. After the PP goal, I knew we were in trouble as Campbell and co. quit denying the zone and started spectating on defense. We will get ******* thrashed if we play like this for an extended period of time. Needless to say we yielded 2 more goals and I thought we were in line for yet another meltdown. Thanfully for the Hawks it didn't fully come to fruition. If yielded skating room in the offensive, both teams will score in bunches if given the opportunity. The key for the rest of the series will be which blue line steps up, and if the Hawks can continue to cut down on the sloppy miscues (horrible line changes, TOs, and penalities). At this point anything can happen, and I'm eager to see if the Hawks can thwart themselves back into the series by winning game 4.

I'm a Blackhawk fan, but I don't even have to be a homer to say this post is ridiculously false. As a matter of fact the Blackhawks match up with the Wings as well as anybody when comparing individual talent. The Wings have all the great players you mentioned, while the Hawks have Kane, Toews, Havlat, Sharp, Versteep, Bolland, Ladd, Keith, Seabrook, etc. The reality is both teams have a lot of depth throughout their lineup; I will concede this however: you guys have more depth across your blue line. It took the Hawks all season (against you guys) and 14 games of playoff hockey to realize they HAVE to put pressure on the puck instead of letting teams gain entry to the zone without any resistance. The Hawks had several chances to beat the Wings during the regular season, but couldn't hold leads because they would NOT pressure the puck and get aggressive on the forecheck. The result were several high percentage scoring chances as your elite players had room to maneuver and open passing lanes in the offensive zone. If anybody plays you guys they way we did until game 2 of this series their going to get beat more often than not. Your team is just that talented. The crux of the 'Hawks potential success relies on pressuring the puck, eliminating TOs, having clean line-changes, and avoiding Detroit's ability to creat oddman rushes. In game 2 they did a much better job of pressuring the puck (in 5 on 5 but I'd still like them to pressure more on the power play as well), and the result was a well contested game that the Hawks lost on a mindnumbing TO. In front of the home crowd, they did a great job in all 4 facets aside from the last 7 minutes of the 2nd period (this team has a propensity to stand around after goals, thus giving them up in bunches). If the Hawks keep this up they definately have a chance to win this series. You were absolutley right on one front however; you guys are NOT the Canucks or the Flames. If we play the rest of this series like we did against those teams the series will be over in 5 games. But as a Hawk fan I am optimistic as we are finally starting to do the things I've been waiting for all season. That at least gives us a chance. It should be a great series from here on out as both teams are immensely talented. Hopefully Datsyuk will be able to play for you guys, as will Havlat and Khabby for us. As a fan I'd hate to see us deprived of seeing the best players on the ice. If only Kronwall had leveled Matt Walker instead. He would have done us a favor. And one more thing; here's to seeing a game where neither team has more than 3 PP chances. I'm sick and tired of both sides bitching about the referrees and the bothced calls, non-calls, or favoritism perceived to exist toward either team. It's got beyond tolerable.

Thanks for swatting that idiot down. Look (to the basher), I don't come here to talk trash, or put Hawk bias into everything thing I write. I'm just a fan that enjoys discussions with fans of opposing teams as it's usually refreshing to get insite that doesn't have a pro-Hawk slant to it. If you can't handle that, I guess that's your problem. Everyone knows the Wings are a great team with several great players, but I really think Babcock is your biggest asset. He understands what it takes to beat the opposing team, and what each and every one of his players should be doing to ensure the greatest probability of victory. Q on the other hand hasn't a clue, as affirmed during the in-game interview where he wasn't 'concerned' with how his team was playing. Babcock on the other hand, reiterated that his team needed to play their game and the rest would take care of itself. With the way the Hawks played in the defensive zone he sure was right. On a side note, a poster on another board noted he knew some people who are staying at the Hawks hotel. Apparently they saw Havlat needing ambulatory aid just to get around. In other words, the prospects of him playing the next game look dim, and with his history I wouldn't plan on seeing him for the rest of the series. That is NOT what the Hawks need right now (if only it could have been Matt Walker).

As a Blackhawk fan that is quite obvious. Q is an absolute moron and has no defensive system in place whatsoever. The blueliners were worked over in BOTH the Calgary and Vancouver series but he refuses to acknowledge there is a glaring problem. If that's not enough, he plays the worst defensmen in the NHL over Aaron Johnson and puts him on the NUMBER ONE Pk unit if Seabs or Keith is in the box. Anybody that falls in love with Walker is a ******* retard to say the least. It really is sad as Detroit's offense really wasn't impressive at all today. But with the Blackhawks playing their worst defensive game of the playoffs (which really says a lot as they had a lot of poor performances), Detroit had scoring chances galore. Unfortunately for the Hawks, the Wings are far superior to the Nucks and Flames and will scorch teams when given this many easy opportunities. Between the failed clearing attempts, whiffed passes, TOs, odd man rushes from poor defensive positioning, etc. the Hawks are lucky the Wings didn't net 8 or more goals. If it wasn't for Khabby today (aside from the first goal that he should have gloved) I'm sure they would have. What pisses me off the most is when I see Detroit implementing the SAME pressure D the Hawks should be using. Most of our rushes were stifled at the blue line because your D was aggressive with the forecheck and put pressure on the puck at all times. The Hawks on the other hand, will let the Wings gain entry to the zone with 2 skaters despite having 4 men back, and let Detroit move the puck around at will. As we saw today that's utter suicide. The Hawks offense is good enough to win 1 maybe 2 games, but they have no chance if Q doesn't wake up and acknowledge the problem. And no, changing the lines isn't what I'm talking about dumbass (Q).

Wrong. Campbell is sloppy and average at best in our own zone, but Matt Walker is, bar none, the WORST player on the ice for either team. He is utterly ******* worthless and an absolute failure as a hockey player. Considering the amount of mistakes Barker makes, it is a TERRIBLE pairing when they are on the ice. If you can't score on these guys you can't score on anybody.